Covered: The Robert Glasper Trio Recorded Live at Capitol Studios [LP]

by Robert Glasper

Overview

Four months after winning his second Grammy Award in the R&B category for Black Radio 2, pianist Robert Glasper re-assembles the acoustic jazz trio that played on his first two Blue Note recordings. Bassist Vicente Archer and drummer Damion Reid assist the pianist in a live audience recording from Capitol's famed Studio A. Covered is far from a return to an acoustic piano trio for Glasper. Instead, it's an acoustic approach to the directions he employed on his early Blue Note dates, and the R&B and hip-hop engagements on Black Radio. With the redo of "I Don't Even Care," Black Radio 2 commences with a nearly elliptical air, but Reid's skittering snare creates a dance rhythm while Archer's bassline plays the changes and tastefully fills Glasper's ever widening melodic circle. With post-bop flourishes, he nonetheless remains close to the harmonic center, uncovering its richness in the process. The rhythm section's intro to Radiohead's "Reckoner" is lithe and almost funky before Glasper uses the melody's limited palette as a circular, restrained, yet emotionally moving exploration of its possibilities. The album's centerpiece is the 13-minute "In Case You Forgot." It begins with a knotty, angular solo piano intro (check "Silly Rabbit" from 2007's In My Element), with single-note syncopations and mid-register arpeggios cascading around a four-note bassline with classical embellishments. When the rhythm section enters, they weave jazz standards and modern pop songs together -- from Freddie Hubbard's "Up Jumped Spring" and Cyndi Lauper's "Time After Time" to Bonnie Raitt's "I Can't Make You Love Me," among others -- with sharp, sudden cuts from Glasper before they all climb headlong into their own sprint. Scattered throughout the set is Glasper's sincere but wry dialogue with his audience. A considerable strength from the trio is their ability to translate the appeal of neo-soul ballads such as Musiq (Soulchild)'s "So Beautiful," Jhene Aiko's "The Worst," and Bilal's "Levels" as jazz, even equating them with standards. An example is "Stella by Starlight," whose canny arrangement simultaneously celebrates, decodes, and cracks open Bill Evans' lyricism atop triple-timed brushed snare -- think drum'n'bass -- and a bumping bassline. Harry Belafonte delivers an earnest, grainy, proud and poignant spoken word appearance on "Got Over." Set closer "I'm Dying of Thirst" offers a shadowy melody to a Latin-tinged tom-tom and bass groove as a children's chorus recites the names of African-Americans shot by police; it results in a statement of dignity and self-determination. Glasper's piano alternates between contemplative vamp and haunting elegy before it whispers to a finish. Covered may be a return to the acoustic piano trio, but cedes none of the ground gained by the Black Radio albums. This is Glasper refusing to be reined in by any format or artistic desire but his own. This set is welcoming, open, and warm: it invites fans of all of his musical pursuits along for the ride. ~ Thom Jurek

Product Details

Release Date:	06/16/2015
Label:	Blue Note
UPC:	0602547245717
Rank:	25649

Tracks

1. Intro
2. I Don't Even Care
3. Reckoner
4. Barangrill
5. In Case You Forgot
6. So Beautiful
7. The Worst
8. Good Morning
9. Stella by Starlight
10. Levels
11. Got Over
12. I'm Dying of Thirst

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Robert Glasper   Primary Artist,Piano
Vicente Archer   Bass
Damion Reid   Drums
Musiq Soulchild   Guest Artist
Harry Belafonte   Featured Artist
Samuel Brown   Guest Artist
Iskinder "Skindoo" Adefris-Yaxley   Guest Artist
Josiah Xavier Brown   Guest Artist
Ralphie "Hoop" Richardson   Guest Artist
Riley Kirkland Glasper   Guest Artist

Technical Credits

Chris Athens   Mastering
Drew Ramsey   Composer
Colin Greenwood   Composer
Ed O'Brien   Composer
Shannon Sanders   Composer
Marilyn Bergman   Composer
Macy Gray   Composer
Joni Mitchell   Composer
Pharrell Williams   Composer
Robert Glasper   Arranger,Composer,Producer
Ned Washington   Composer
Phil Selway   Composer
Quincy Jones   Composer
Thom Yorke   Composer
Alan Bergman   Composer
Keith Lewis   Mixing,Engineer
Don Was   A&R,Executive Producer
Jonny Greenwood   Composer
Harry Belafonte   Composer
Victor Young   Composer
John Gray   Composer
Shawn Carter   Composer
Bilal Oliver   Composer
Don Hannah   Photography
Steve Cook   A&R
Britten Newbill   Composer
Nicole Hegeman   Executive Producer
John Stephens   Composer
Taalib Johnson   Composer
Charles Edward Hugo   Composer
Hayden Miller   Design,Art Direction
Kendrick Lamar   Composer
Maclean Robinson   Composer
Jhene Chilombo   Composer
Brian Keith Warfield   Composer
Lee Huston Jr.   Composer